Race in Recitatif free essay sample

Recitatif is a story written by Toni Morrison. It is about characters Twyla and Roberta and their experiences during and after being put in a shelter. Race can change what a person’s motives are viewed as. Racial stereotyping and racial segregation play a big part in this story. We will write a custom essay sample on Race in Recitatif or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page Twyla and Roberta are of a different race/ethnicity which causes strife between the two and they have different opinion on things. It never truly states either characters race, but it says that they look like â€Å"salt and pepper†, indicating that one is white and one is black. Race affects a lot of things in any situation, no matter how much we want it not to. Some statements give you an idea of which is which. Twyla’s ethnicity is indicated by Jimi Hendrix and Roberta’s by the statement, â€Å"you know how it was with black and white back then†. Twyla appears to be white and Roberta appears to be black in this story. Another thing that indicates it is that Roberta is completely against busing but Twyla is not. Plus they both thought that Maggie was of their own race. Twyla thought she was white and Roberta thought she was black. Also, each others attitudes towards each other or toward others also indicates which is white and which is black. Although neither character can remember exactly what happened with Maggie, the mute lady that worked at the shelter, each character had their own attitudes towards it. Roberta that it was more acceptable that Maggie was beaten than Twyla did because Roberta thought Maggie was black, while Twyla didn’t think she was because she thought Maggie was white. Each character has their own viewpoint on exactly what had happened that day due to their race which gave them a different attitude towards the situation. Also, Twyla thought she fell and the older girls laughed at her versus Roberta thinking she was tripped and beaten. The big thing in this story is racial stereotyping. You would never know which character is of which race without it. The writer uses racial stereotyping and a very clever way when writing this story. Instead of outright saying which is which, you figure it out based on racial stereotyping. In most cases we should not racially stereotype or even stereotype at all. But the author uses it in such a way that it is okay in this instance. Without this racial stereotyping, you would never know which is â€Å"salt† and which is â€Å"pepper†. Racial stereotyping gives you the information needed to know from which racial background each character comes from. After everything that happened in the shelter both characters eventually left the shelter. Twyla became a waitress and Twyla did some drugs and became a part of the bad crowd. When they saw each other again, Twyla was happy to see Roberta, but Roberta didn’t feel the same way due to her attitude towards her. They moved on. Both characters got married and had families. They then met in again in a supermarket and Roberta had a good attitude towards Twyla. Depending on whom she was with and what part of her life she was in, Roberta’s attitude towards Twyla would change. This is a racial stereotype. Roberta again had a bad racial attitude towards Twyla when she started picketing and protesting things about the school system and racial issues. While Twyla was okay with segregation in the school system and blacks going to one school while whites went to another, Roberta was not okay with it. She was actually strongly against it. She felt that blacks and whites should have equal opportunities and she was picketing about it. Because of an incident while Twyla was in a car and black women were rocking her car and scaring her, Twyla started picketing against them on the other side of the street. In conclusion, racial stereotyping and racial segregation both have a part in this story. Racial stereotyping helps you figure out which character is black and which is white. This is important because of the racial segregation going on at the time. The schools and bus systems were separating the races and the blacks were trying to change that. They were wanting equal opportunities for themselves and everyone. In the end you never find out the true story about Maggie and never know whether she was black or white, tripped or fell, and whether she was beaten or not.

The New Gold essays

The New Gold essays Through out time scientists have been fascinated by the wonders and creations of earth. From minerals to natural resources theses marvels had mesmerized people through out the centuries. One major factor in this is the discovery of elements and how everything is put together. It takes time and effort to discover and take data on these elements the one in particular will be spoken of is Platinum. Julius Scaliger discovered platinum in 1735. The origin is from the Spanish word platina, which means little silver. The earliest known usage of platinum is from an Egyptian inscription from 700 B.C. There was also some found in Egyptian jewelry but scientists believe it was used by coincidence. The first discovery of Platinum in the Americas was by the Indians and later discovered by Spanish when they conquered Columbia. IT was an annoyance because it had to be separated in the gold washings so thats where it founds its name. From these discoveries, this appeared in the journal of Don Antonio de Qlloa, and this was later published in 1748. Awakening European scientists who identified, named, and determined the properties of the new metals for the next century. (Earth Science for Students, 121) Platinum is a beautiful precious, silver-white metal that is even more valuable than gold. When Platinum is pure, it is soft and flexible. It has coefficient of development almost equal to that of soda-lime-silica glass. The symbol for this element is Pt and is classified as a Transition metal. Its atomic number us 78, and its atomic mass is 195.08. The crystal structure is cubic. The melting point of Platinum is 17720 C and the boiling point is 3827 C. (Bentor, 2) Platinum is a commonly used element. Scientists frequently use platinum, because the metal resists heat. So Platinum is often found in large parts of production equipment. It is used for doctors constantly. The best surgical equipment is made out of Platinum. Platinum...

Disability In Two Movies Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2250 words

Disability In Two Movies - Essay Example These impairments may occur to different aspects of normal functioning which include cognitive, sensory, physical, or psychological development (Morrison 2010, p45). There are various types of disabilities. The most common types are physical disabilities such as handicap-which is large scale disability of almost all physical body parts, limb malfunctions, mental retardations, visual and hearing impairments. However, other forms such intellectual disabilities, cognitive ones and gustatory and olfactory impairments have been given little attention (Johnson 2008, p56). Various media have presented disability situations differently. Among them include popular media such as film. In the last three decades, the importance of raising attention to the situation has aroused a lot of public interest and consequently, such popular media (Thomson 2003, p78). Basing on life-related realties or fiction, film has presented disability situations either as they happen in reality or in different perce ptions. But the terminology still remains a complex phenomenon. Given the diversity in occurrence, different understandings have thus been applied to this terminology. In order to understand it effectively first, it is imperative that a theoretical approach to explanation of the terminology be undertaken and consequently evaluation of such presentations be made with regard the movies â€Å"My Left Foot† and â€Å"Born on the Fourth of July†. Theoretical perceptions of disability The theoretical explanation of disability takes a multidimensional approach. Focusing on the affected parts of the body, theoretical approach emphasizes on processing functions and explains disability according to different perspectives. To begin with, medical model posits that disability is a malfunction of a part of the body caused by either trauma, illness or other health-related problems, which results in inability in function and thus needing special medical attention by professionals. The model reviews this terminology is able to be remedied and proposes a curative approach to the situation. It views the condition as absolutely rectifiable or almost correctible. Influential political views on this model suggest that medical practices be modified to allow entire medical care for the situation. A social model states that a social construct created through societal perception of reality. It explains that the problem is not individual based but rather collectively created by particular forces in the environment. It indicates that integration into the society is possible, but only through application of appropriate perceptual views. Given that the condition is created by ideologies, large scale change involving individuals and the communities will change disability and thus equal access to resources and privileges only entails human rights issues (Jensen 2011, p89). A biological mode posits that disability is a genetic condition that affects specific individuals or simpl y family trees. Existing in genetic forms, inborn disabilities such as being handicapped and other biological malfunctions occur genetically due to containment in genes and are transmitted down generations. This model only makes observation of the situation with further elaboration of remedy of the situation taking medical approach as a resolution. Movie summaries My left foot This is a